David Lynch Backtracks After Saying Trump "Could Go Down as One of the Greatest Presidents"

"You are causing suffering and division. It's not too late to turn the ship around," Lynch wrote on Facebook in an open letter to the president.

David Lynch is reversing course on complimentary comments he made recently about President Donald Trump, saying they were "taken a bit out of context."

Speaking to The Guardian over the weekend, the Montana-born filmmaker recently said he believes that Trump could be remembered as one of the best presidents of all time for his unique way of approaching the job. "He could go down as one of the greatest presidents in history because he has disrupted the thing so much," Lynch said. "No one is able to counter this guy in an intelligent way."

He added that Trump stands out where other politicians have failed. "Our so-called leaders can't take the country forward, can't get anything done. Like children, they are. Trump has shown all this," Lynch continued. His comments came as a surprise to mostly liberal Hollywood.

For his part, Trump tweeted out a story with Lynch's quotes, aggregated by conservative website Breibart.com, on Monday. He also read the quotes during a rally in South Carolina that same day to applause from those in the crowd, and added: "There's David Lynch. Enjoy it because his career in Hollywood is officially over."

On Tuesday, Lynch took to Facebook to explain those comments in a post addressed "Dear Mr. President."

"I saw that you re-tweeted the Breitbart article with the heading — Director David Lynch: Trump ‘Could Go Down as One of the Greatest Presidents in History.’ I wish you and I could sit down and have a talk. This quote which has traveled around was taken a bit out of context and would need some explaining," he wrote. "Unfortunately, if you continue as you have been, you will not have a chance to go down in history as a great president. This would be very sad it seems for you — and for the country. You are causing suffering and division."

He went on to plead with Trump to "turn the ship around."

"It’s not too late to turn the ship around," Lynch wrote. "Point our ship toward a bright future for all. You can unite the country. Your soul will sing. Under great loving leadership, no one loses — everybody wins. It’s something I hope you think about and take to heart. All you need to do is treat all the people as you would like to be treated."

In his Guardian interview, the creator of Twin Peaks and director of films including Blue Velvet and Mulholland Drive said he voted for Bernie Sanders in the 2016 Democratic primary and that he isn't sure whom he voted for in the presidential election but thinks he ultimately went with Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson.

Lynch is currently promoting his memoir/biography, Room to Dream.

See his full Facebook post below, along with Trump's tweet.

Dear Mr. President, This is David Lynch writing. I saw that you re-tweeted the Breitbart article with the heading –...